Road Trip
by Steel
Summary: Clarice and 'the boys' in Las Vegas. *Complete* Decided to add an Epilogue!
1. Road Trip

First off, a big thank you to Chameleon for the plot bunny and to Luna, who turned this one down. Second, as for the timeline, sometime after SOTL.

Third, Cannon, Canon, Camera or whatever, you can throw that one right out the window.

I'll be lucky if this makes any sense at all!

With that said, good luck and if someone figures out the plot, will you let me know what it is!

The usual applies; I own no one or nothing pertaining to this story.

**Road Trip**

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As I sit here, staring at my computer screen, wondering how I ever got myself into such a predicament, it occurs to me, that's just the way life goes. Things don't always happen as we plan and in this case, that's a major understatement.

It all started about a week ago. Jack Crawford had called me into his office to inform me about a forensics conference in Las Vegas Nevada that we were to attend. One of the speakers was to be Gil Grissom, of the Las Vegas crime lab. At first I was rather excited at the chance to meet Grissom, considered one of the top crime scene investigators in the United States, that was until Crawford announced the rest of our party. Clint Pearsall and Paul Krendler were to accompany us to the conference. Pearsall was bad enough, but Krendler?

I immediately began trying to figure a way out of this little excursion. The thought of spending three days with this trio of G-Men gave me a rash. After several failed excuses and a few forced tears, Crawford made his position clear, this was a mandatory conference and I WOULD attend, like it or not.

So off we went, just like one big happy dysfunctional family. Of course I got stuck sitting next to Krendler on the plane, Pearsall's doing, no doubt. During one point into the flight, as I tried to ignore Krendler and get some sleep, I felt his hand on my upper thigh. Slapping his hand as hard as I could, I opened my eyes and said, "Damn Paul, did you see the size of that bug that was crawling on my leg?" Krendler just rubbed his hand saying, "Did you have to hit me so hard Starling?" Smiling, I resumed my nap and was no longer bothered by the nasty little insect in the seat next to me.

We finally touched down at LVX at 6:02pm. Crawford rented a car and we headed for the hotel.

I was pretty tired and just wanted to take a bath and get some sleep. "Where are we staying Sir, if you don't mind me asking?"

"Not at all Starling. The Bureau made reservations for us at the Las Vegas Hilton."

"Rats, I was hoping for the Venetian."

"Well, they tried several different hotels, but the brass decided this was more in their price range."

"Yeah right. You can bet if the big wigs were here, it would be a different story."

"Starling, why don't you just try and have a good time, after all, this _is_ a freebie." Krendler spouted.

After giving Krendler a good glare, I just turned back to the scenery. I hated to admit it, but he was right. Why couldn't I just relax and at least try to enjoy myself. I decided that I would give it a try.

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My room was small, but it was more than I would need. A full size bed, a table with a couple of chairs, a small sofa and a fair size Jacuzzi tub. The tub was to be my first stop.

Rummaging through the mini bar, I found a coke and some small bottles of alcohol. I popped open the can of coke, and after taking a big gulp, I poured one of the small bottles of Jack Daniel's into the can and headed for the tub.

I must have fallen asleep, because the next thing I remember I was shivering. The water in the tub had turned cold and my body resembled a sunsweet prune. I dried myself off, threw on my sweats and climbed into bed. Looking to the clock, it was still only about 9:30pm. Rolling over, I was asleep before I knew it. Then the dream came.

A dream I have had more nights than I could count. Always the same dream. The first time I remember having the dream was the worst.

I'm in Memphis, bringing Dr. Lecter his drawings. I walk through a set of double doors. I see the cage set up in the middle of the room. There's a man in the cage, lying on the floor. He appears to be handcuffed to the cage. He's not moving. I don't see anyone else in the room. I slowly make my way to the cage. The door is open, so I go inside. I find that the man cuffed to the cage is an officer. Blood, there is so much blood.

I place the drawings on the small table and see a tape recorder. The play button is depressed, but the tape is at the end. I hit the stop button, then rewind. After a few moments I hit play.

I'm not familiar with this music, classical, but it's nice, calming, soothing. I close my eyes, listening to the notes. At some point I become aware of a presence. HIS presence, behind me, so close I can fell his breath on the back of my neck. I don't move, whether it's out of fear or something else, I'm not sure. I feel him place his hands on my shoulders and then run them down the length of my arms. I am spun around so quickly my head continues long after my body has stopped. I feel him push me into the bars, pinning me there with his body, his hands grasping the bars on either side of me. His face is stained with blood. I am trapped, not by his body, but his eyes. I try to look away, but cannot. Then his head begins a slow decent, I should feel repulsed, I should try and break free, but I do neither. When I feel his lips on mine, my body quivers. I know he feels it too, I feel his lips turn up into a slight smile as he deepens the kiss. As his tongue pushes its way into my mouth, I can taste the blood as well as him, it's intoxicating. I find myself returning his kiss, no longer able to resist. As I allow my tongue to slip into his waiting mouth, he bites down, not to inflict damage or pain, more out of passion and effect. As I slightly flinch, he is aware that his tactic has achieved its goal. I am engulfed in a wave of desire for this man that I have never felt with another. He pulls away from me then to speak only a single word, "Bye." When he turns to leave, I reach out to grab his arm, but before I can touch him, I wake up.

Waking up after having the dream for the first time, I could swear I had the taste of blood in my mouth. I then felt the pain, and a throbbing in my tongue. Making my way to the bathroom, I looked in the mirror. There I saw blood forming at the corner of my mouth and after further examination I found I had indeed bitten my tongue, or so I hoped.

I had finally come to the conclusion that it would not be by my hand, if Dr. Lecter ever found himself locked up again. The lambs would surely wail for all eternity if I were to be the one responsible, so that was that. It was odd, the sense of comfort I had attained from that decision, but after having made it, the lambs were silent, granted the new dream had started, but I could live with it.


	2. Conference; Day One

This seems to be going much better, since I decided that there's no plot.

My apologies to you Sam, as Griss will only have a cameo, but I'm not done with him yet.

The usual applies; I own no one or nothing pertaining to this story.

**Conference; Day One**

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I met the Three Stooges in the lobby at 8:00am. The conference was to begin at 10:00am in one of the rooms at the Mandalay Bay. Crawford decided we would go there to have breakfast, since there was a Star Trek convention in town, which meant every Trekkie would be descending on our hotel because the Las Vegas Hilton was home to Star Trek: The Experience. I myself had plans on checking it out before we left. I mean how weird could this alien stuff be considering whom I was traveling with.

Breakfast was pleasant, except for the noise Krendler was making as he ate. Man, this guy is a pig! Crawford seemed to be in a different world. Pearsall was also quiet, although he did attempt some polite conversation. I finished my breakfast and after excusing myself, I left the boys at the table and went to check out the hotel.

I walked around for awhile, checking out all the little shops. In one of the shops, I found a beautiful gold necklace with a small initial C. It wasn't anything fancy, but it was something I could see myself wearing. I looked down at my watch and noticed that the time was getting away from me, it was almost time to meet the boys. I decided to wait on the necklace, business before pleasure.

Standing on the escalator, on my way up to the conference room, I sorta felt like I was in a daze. Kinda like when you're driving home from work and all of the sudden you're just home, but you don't really remember the trip. A smell had brought me back to the living. Cologne, very expensive as far as I could tell. I looked around to see if I could determine were it was coming from. I was alone on my side of the escalator, but I caught a glimpse of a man just getting off the down side. He appeared to be very well dressed, from behind anyway, and the view wasn't bad either. There was something familiar about the way he moved, but as I reached the top of the platform, the escalator pushed me out onto solid ground. I just barely caught my balance.

When I turned back to look for the man, he was gone.

I then heard Crawford calling me, "Come on Starling, we're over here."

We made our way into the huge room. There were rows and rows of rectangular tables and chairs. It looked as if there was room for a least two hundred people and it was already over half full. We took our seats and Krendler started almost immediately, "Do they expect us to sit in these uncomfortable chairs all day?" The only response he received was from Crawford, who simply said, "Shut up Paul."

The conference lasted about six hours, with a few breaks thrown in. For the most part it was pretty boring, all but Grissom. This man truly loved his job and it showed. Everyone else seemed to be going through the motions. When it was over, Crawford and I went over to meet Grissom, as Krendler and Pearsall took off even before the applause had died down from the last speaker.

After speaking with Grissom for only a few minutes, he was called away on business, so Crawford and I left.

"So what did you think Starling?"

"I thought he was pretty cute, but all that bug stuff gives me the creeps."

"I was referring to the conference, Starling."

"Oh. It was okay I guess." I was trying to hide my embarrassment, but Crawford had already

seen the added color to my face.

"I've got some work to do and some phone calls to make, do you want me to take you back to the hotel Starling?"

"No, that's okay Sir, I think I'll just wing it."

"Alright, I'll see you later then."

Ahh, alone at last, now to check out the town. I decided to start with the hotel that I wished we had stayed in, the Venetian. I always wanted to go to Italy and I figured this was as close as I was ever going to get.

The Venetian was as beautiful as I imagined. It was almost like another world. I walked for what seemed like forever, just taking it all in. When I saw the gondolas, I knew I just had to ride in one. Venice may be far away, but you would never know it from this place.

With help from the Gondolier, I sat down in the small craft. As we started to move, I leaned back and closed my eyes. I could hear singing in the distance. This was the most peaceful I had felt in years. We were making our way under some small bridges when I heard something hit in front of the gondola. I opened my eyes to see the gondolier smiling at me.

"What?" I said.

Still smiling, the man pointed to the front of the craft. I looked were he was pointing to see a small black box.

"Where did that come from?"

"The man on the bridge." he answered.

Looking back to the bridge, I saw no one.

"What man, there's no one there?"

"The man on the bridge pointed to the box and then pointed to you and then threw the box into the gondola. Oh yeah and he winked." the Gondolier explained, still smiling.

I reached down and picked up the small velvet box. I wasn't sure if I wanted to open it or not, but I had to. I took a deep breath and snapped open the lid.

It was the necklace with my initial.


	3. Quark's Bar

Thank you all for the reviews. I'm glad you seem to be enjoying this.

It's nice to know I'm not the only one in a silly mood!

So let the silliness continue.

The usual applies; I own no one or nothing pertaining to this story.

**Quark's Bar**

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During the ride back to the hotel, many thoughts raced through my head as I ran my fingers over the necklace. I knew what I should do, but that's not what I was going to do. There was only one person who could or would have thrown that necklace in the gondola. That also had accounted for the bizarre feeling I had this morning on the escalator.

It was 7:00pm before I got back to my hotel room, too early to go to bed and to claustrophobic to stay in, so I took a quick shower, changed my clothes, opting to wear the necklace and headed down to the bar. I decided on Quark's Bar in the Star Trek section, God knows I could use some entertainment after the events of the day.

I found a nice, relatively quite corner in which I could watch the goings on in this strange place.

Right away someone caught my eye. Great, that's just great, Krendler and Pearsall were seated just about five tables over from me. Krendler looked like he was already three sheets to the wind. There were two, what I can only assume to be females, also seated at the table.

One of the female aliens I recognized as a Klingon, the other, I wasn't quite sure what look she was trying to achieve, maybe a giant tribble. Krendler was trying to put the make on the Klingon, that part was obvious. I watched them for some time, it was better than television. I only wished I had a video camera to record what came next.

Krendler was getting louder with each passing moment, he was drinking what the waiter called Romulan Ale. As Krendler leaned back to drain the bottle, he fell over backward in the chair, taking the Klingon with him. The ale, which is blue, colored his white shirt nicely. Finally crawling out from underneath Krendler, the Klingon yelled at him in what I could only imagine to be Klingonieze and then spat on him before storming out of the bar with the giant tribble close behind.

I tried to control my laughter, but it only got worse when Pearsall tried to help Krendler off the floor and fell on top of him. After flopping around on the floor for a while, the security guys took pity on them, helping them up and escorting them to their rooms.

Finally getting my laughter under control, I wiped the tears from my face with a napkin. Placing the napkin back on the table, I looked up to find that I was no longer alone. As I stared up at the man standing in front of my table it occurred to me that I might have had one to many glasses of Klingon blood wine. I closed my eyes tightly, opening them again only to find that he was still standing there, looking down at me with one eyebrow raised.

Only one thing came to my mind as I spoke,

"Has anyone ever told you that you would have made a great Vulcan?"

That started my laughter again. Yep, too much wine.

He sat down across from me and appeared to be quite amused by my reaction to him. I must admit, I was to. When I calmed my laughter, my bluntness surprised even me,

"I won't insult your intelligence by asking you what you are doing here, so what do you want Dr. Lecter?"

"Clarice, I'm hurt. I merely wanted to see you, speak to you, if possible, without outside interference, it has been awhile you know."

"Yes, I suppose it has. So, how's life on the run?"

"It has it's moments, although the alternative is not an option." he said with a wink.

"I'm glad you're wearing the necklace, it's not what I would have picked out for you, but the way your eyes sparkled when you looked at it, how could I not."

Touching the necklace brought a smile to my face, I knew I should have turned it in, but I just couldn't. I knew as soon as I opened the box in the gondola, who had thrown it there and I made an unconscious decision to keep it anyway.

"Doctor, first I want to thank you for the gift, you really shouldn't have, but you know that already. Second, once you told me you had no plans to call on me, that the world was more interesting with me in it. Then you asked me to extend you the same courtesy and I said I couldn't make that promise. Well Doctor, I'm now willing to make you that promise. I ask nothing of you in return, but I've found that knowing you're free sits better with me than thinking of you in a cell."

He stared at me for sometime, uncertain of my motives no doubt, but whatever he needed from my eyes, he found.

"I must say Clarice, you never stop surprising me. Whatever I expected from this meeting, I'm quite sure this wasn't it. What has happened to drastically alter your outlook on the world, or is it just me, Clarice?"

"If I ever come up with an answer to that, you'll be the first to know."

"You never have been afraid of me, have you Clarice?"

"No." I said without hesitation.

He smiled at my answer, standing, he offered me his arm and asked, "Would you be so kind as to join me for a walk?"

"Why not." As I stood, I took his arm, instead of the tingle I felt in Memphis when our finger touched, it was more like a bolt of lightning.

As we walked along the strip, conversation was at a minimum. I got the feeling he was just enjoying the fact that we were here, together. I turned to ask him where we were going, when I saw him smile. He was looking at something straight ahead. When I turned back I got the shock of my life. Walking straight toward us was Gil Grissom. I was just this side of panicked, when the Doctor turned to me and winked. Great, he thinks this is fun. I took a deep breath as Grissom approached. I wasn't sure how to play this, so I just tried to be myself, yeah right.

"Hi Mr. Grissom, nice to see you again." I said trying to keep my voice steady.

"Hello Agent….."

"Starling Sir, Clarice Starling."

"Starling, that's right, good to see you too. So, how do you like Vegas Agent Starling?"

"It's definitely not what I'm used to, but I've had a good time so far."

"It's a beautiful night for a walk, are you just out sight seeing?"

"Yes, me and my friend…." I froze, not knowing what to call 'my friend.'

Dr. Lecter didn't miss a beat, stepping forward with his hand extended he said,

Williams, Dr. Graham Williams, it's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Grissom.

I watched Grissom closely, for any sign that he recognized the man he was now shaking hands with. Uh-oh, there it is.

"Dr. Williams, have we met?"

"It's quite possible Mr. Grissom, have you ever been to Baltimore?"

"No, I can't say that I have, is that where you're from Dr. Williams?"

"Not originally, but I did live there for some time."

That's when I almost lost it, lived there, killed there, locked up there and returning there if I didn't get these two apart.

"Gentleman I hate to break this up, but I should be getting back to my hotel, it's getting late and I have to be up early tomorrow. It was nice seeing you again Mr. Grissom."

Directing his attention back to Clarice, Grissom said, You too Agent Starling, I hope you enjoy the rest of the conference and it was nice to meet you Dr. Williams."

The men shook hands once again and then Dr. Lecter and I continued our walk.

"Graham Williams?" I asked.

All I received in return was a smile.


	4. Conference; Day Two

Okay peoples, it only gets stranger from here, but I promise, Elvis does not appear in this fic!

The usual applies; I own no one or nothing pertaining to this story.

**Conference; Day Two**

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Dr. Lecter had been a perfect gentleman, walking me back to the hotel and kissing my hand before taking his leave. I was glad that Grissom hadn't figured out who my escort had been. My life had enough turmoil going on as it was. As I soaked in the tub, my mind drifted to the dream.

There was part of me, the woman part, that wanted to grab his arm and pull him back to me. Then there was the other part, the F.B.I. part, that wanted to handcuff him and throw his ass in prison for the unspeakable things he had done. I reasoned somewhere deep down inside that the general public was probably safer if he was free. Bizarre I know, but more people seemed to get hurt or killed when he was incarcerated or trying to escape it. Just like a wild animal, roaming free, wishing only to be left alone, so too was Dr. Lecter.

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The next day passed quickly. The conference was unmemorable, just a bunch of

'good ole boys' talking about stuff we covered in training.

We weren't scheduled to leave until the morning, so I thought about doing some shopping before dinner. A dinner I was not looking forward to, but Crawford wanted to take us out, on the Bureau of course, which meant we would probably end up at Denny's.

I was walking from shop to shop, just browsing, when I felt a disturbance in the force. I turned to find HIM, about twenty feet away, leaning comfortably against the wall, watching me. I made my way to him, shaking my head as I did so. He didn't move a muscle as I approached. I took the vacant spot on the wall next to him before asking,

"With all the attractions in this town, how is it that I seem to be the focus of your attention?"

"There is really no comparison, Clarice." He said, still facing forward, which I was grateful for since my face turned every shade of red you could imagine.

"I was thinking about getting some coffee Doctor, would you like to join me? There's something I want to ask you."

He pushed himself away from the wall and facing me with a curious look he said, "I would be delighted."

Finding a small coffee shop, we took a seat and after the waiter brought our coffee he asked,

"So, what is it you want to ask of me, Special Agent Starling?"

"Well, I'm just kinda curious," that got a rise from of one eyebrow, but no more, so I continued,

"Not that I mind, at this point anyway, but you did tell me once that you had no plans to call on me. I just wondered what made you change your mind?"

"He just chuckled and before taking a sip of his coffee he said, "I was invited, don't you remember?"

"Invited? By whom?"

"By you of course."

Now I was really confused. "But we haven't spoken since my graduation."

"Haven't we, Clarice?"

"No. Speaking with you is something not easily forgotten Doctor, if it can be done at all."

Smiling he said, "Actually we've been speaking for quite some time, Hannah."

"How did you…. Oh shit, are you telling me that you're….."

"That's correct Clarice."

"Mulder?"

"I do apologize for not letting you in on it sooner, but where would have been the fun in that?"

Remembering the many nights in the chat room, hours of conversation and yes, the night before I left for Vegas, telling him I didn't want to go and it would be great if he could be there to keep me from dying of boredom, then asking him to come if he could. Funny what a little alcohol can do to a person, I had to laugh. Out of the thousands of people on the internet, who do I hook up with? Although I knew there were no accidents with this man.

"I guess I should thank you."

"Thank me for what Clarice?"

"You don't know how many times our little chats kept me from cracking up. You gave me an outlet, some place to vent, a friend to talk to."

"Then you are more than welcome Clarice. I'm glad I could be of service."

"Well 'Dr. Williams' I have to be getting back, there's one last torture I must endure before we leave tomorrow."

"Oh, and what might that be?"

"Jack Crawford is taking us to dinner tonight, if I don't show up, he'll probably send the hounds out looking for me and I wouldn't want them finding you instead."

"Yes, that would complicate things a bit. May I walk with you a ways?"

"I think that can be arranged."

As we neared my hotel Dr. Lecter stopped. Turning to him I asked, "Is there something wrong?"

"This is as far as I go Clarice, the rest of your journey I leave to you."

Damn, I hate it when he talks in riddles.

"So this is good-bye Doctor?"

"I'm afraid so Clarice. I have already overstayed my welcome."

Brushing his hand across my cheek he said, "Be well little Starling."

He turned to leave and had taken maybe a step, before I reached out for his arm. It was just like my dream, except this time I got a hold of him. As he turned back, I stepped forward not sure what I was going to do, until I did it. I reached up with my other hand, placing it behind his neck and before I lost my nerve, I pulled him into a kiss. When I released him, he smiled and said, "Thank you Clarice."

I wasn't completely coherent at that point, but I do remember him saying, "You're not ready, but someday you will be."

With that, he kissed the back of my hand and left. I made my way to my hotel room, still not sure what had just happened. Did I just throw myself at a serial killer and get turned down?

No, I knew in the back of my mind, he was right.


	5. Speak Now Or....

Elvis may have left the building, but Darth Vader will live forever!

No, that has nothing to do with this story, but it needed to be said!

Thanks for all the great reviews, you guys are really too much!!

The usual applies; I own no one or nothing pertaining to this story.

**Speak Now Or….**

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I managed to shake the Doctor from my mind long enough to get ready for dinner. At 7:30pm I met my associates in the lobby. Crawford took us to a nice restaurant inside Caesars Palace. We were actually having a good time, but as I said before, alcohol does funny things to a person. I was on my fourth drink, or was it my fifth, whatever number it was, it was beginning to be enough that even Krendler wasn't as irritating as he usually is.

I remember playing a slot machine and thinking I had hit the jackpot, only to find out I had won about fifteen dollars in nickels. What the hell, more money to tip the waitress who was bringing me all the Jack and Coke I could drink.

Now this is where it starts to get strange. I remember dancing, God knows with who. I remember riding in a car, maybe even a limo. Then it gets really fuzzy. I remember eyes, someone's eyes looking at me. I think Pearsall fell out of the car, music was playing.

Oops, I think I threw up on Krendler, but that's it. I wake up in bed with the worst headache I've ever had. I lie still, trying to wish the pain away, when something moves on the bed next to me.

Now I'm frozen, not knowing if I should roll over and look at what's causing the motion, or just run screaming from the room. Curiosity finally getting the better of me, I slowly roll over to face the music, as it were. What I found scared me more than if I would have found a horses head next to me. "Mr. Crawford!!" I screamed.

Crawford's eyes flew open as I screamed again, "What the hell are you doing in my bed!?!"

Finally raising up in the bed and just before I could scream again, Crawford gently put his hand over my mouth and said, "Starling, you don't have to yell, I heard you the first time and I'm not in you bed, you're in mine."

Removing his hand from my mouth, I looked around the room to see that it was indeed Crawford's room and HIS bed I was in. I jumped out of the bed, thankful to find that I still had my clothes on from the previous night. Before I had a chance to say another word, someone knocked on the door. I looked at Crawford who just shrugged his shoulders. The knock came again, but this time it was accompanied with a voice, one I wasn't ready to deal with just yet.

"Hey you love birds, get up, it's almost checkout time." Krendler said from the other side of the door. Oh God, Krendler knew I was in here with Crawford. At that moment, there wasn't a place small enough for me to hide. The knock came again as Krendler said, "Come on, I have something out here for you two, it just got here."

I looked at Crawford again, who was making no attempt to explain this situation. I decided to open the door since I couldn't hide in here forever, as much as I would have liked to.

Pulling the door open, Krendler stood in the doorway holding up a piece of paper for me to see.

"What's that?" I asked

"It's your marriage license Starling."

"It's my WHAT!?!"

Laughing, Krendler handed me the piece of paper and said, "Don't you remember Starling?

You and Crawford got hitched last night. I was the best man, I think." Krendler said as he pushed by me to get to Crawford. "Isn't that right Jack? Clint and I flipped a coin and I won, so he was your maid of honor, before he passed out anyway."

Looking at the license in my hand, sure enough, it was all there in black and white. All of the sudden the worst headache I have ever had turned into a throbbing brain tumor. I kept telling myself that this had to be a dream and I was going to wake up any second. That was until I lowered the paper to see Pearsall now standing in the doorway, grinning at me.

"Good morning Mrs. Crawford."

"Shut up." I said as I turned and released the door, which hit him on the way in.

"Mr. Crawford, would you care to explain this to me."

"There's not much to say Starling, we're married."

"I wake up in my bosses bed, find out we're married, and you don't have anything to say?

Well that's just freakin great. I'm going to my room to pack. You better figure out how you're gonna fix this mess before we leave!"

When I got to my room, I sat down on the bed and tried to remember what had happened. That's when I noticed the ring. It was beautiful. A two-caret emerald cut diamond with a smaller stone on either side, in a platinum setting. I had never seen such a beautiful ring in all my life. I wondered how much it cost, knowing there was no way Crawford could ever afford such a ring. He must have signed his life away at the least.

Knowing time was growing short, I started to pack, still unable to remember the events of the past evening and not really wanting too, I gathered up my bags and headed for the lobby. When the boys finally made it down, Crawford went straight for valet to get the rental car, making it clear he still had no explanation for this more than uncomfortable situation. On the other hand, Krendler and Pearsall seemed to be enjoying this way too much. When Crawford motioned that the car was ready, Pearsall asked, "Can I help you with your luggage, Mrs. Crawford?"

With the nastiest tone of voice I could summon I replied,

"Mr. Pearsall, if you call me that one more time, YOU will be the one in need of assistance."

Pearsall and Krendler both snickered, but declined to make any further comment on the subject.


	6. To Good Friends and Bad Company

Well, this is it, the final chapter. This no plot nonsense has to come to an end sometime.

I thank you all so much for your overwhelming response. This has been a blast to write.

As for your question Luna, I would have mentioned Bella being deceased in the beginning, but you know all to well, as do I, you Lecterphiles are a smart bunch and don't miss a thing. I didn't want anyone thinking in that direction. It would have spoiled the surprise.

So this last chapter is dedicated to all of you Lecterphiles.

You're an Awesome group of people!! Steel-

The usual applies; I own no one or nothing pertaining to this story.

**To Good Friends and Bad Company**

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Once on the plane, I made Krendler switch seats with Crawford, who didn't appear to be ready to deal with my barrage of questions. I didn't care, I wanted answers.

"So Mr. Crawford, why don't you start from the top."

"I'm really sorry about all of this Starling, it's just that, well, we had so much to drink an all."

"That's an understatement, we were plastered, but I still want to know what happened."

"Well, on our way out of Caesars, we were going to get a cab back to the hotel, since none of us were in any condition to drive. That's when the front desk supervisor offered us the hotel limo.

Somewhere between there and the hotel, Pearsall got this funny idea that since we were in Vegas, one of us should get married. Krendler nominated you and as I remember, you 'second the nomination'. When Pearsall spotted the drive-thru wedding chapel, he had the driver pull in and get in line."

"But Sir, that doesn't explain how come WE ended up together."

"Well, after a couple of bars of here comes the bride, Pearsall passed out and Krendler is already married. Believe me Starling, this was all for fun, we didn't mean any harm."

"If it was all for fun, then what about the ring?"

"What ring?"

"This ring." I showed Crawford the ring and I could have sworn that his eyes popped clean out of his head.

"Where did that come from Starling?"

"I had it on when I woke up this morning. I just assumed you had given it to me."

"I know I was pretty drunk last night Starling, but I honestly don't remember ever seeing that ring before. I mean it's possible I picked it up somewhere, but I don't think so. I can check with my credit card company when we get home."

I put the ring on the back burner for now, continuing my interrogation I asked, "So what did you think was going to happen when we all sobered up?"

"I didn't think that far ahead. We were having such a good time, and that includes you Starling.

You don't remember anything?"

"Some things are starting to come back. Was I hanging out the window?"

"Sorta, during the ceremony, you were standing up through the sun-roof."

Oh God, I swear if I get out of this, I will never drink again. Okay, drink to excess.

"When the driver dropped us off, I couldn't find your room key, so that's why you were in my room and I promise you Starling, nothing happened."

Thank God for small favors.

"What are you going to do now, Mr. Crawford? We can't stay married."

Looking at his face as I made the last statement, Crawford seemed truly disappointed.

"I know Starling. I'll take care of it when we get home. I'm sure there won't be any problems getting an annulment."

The rest of the trip was spent in silence.

------------------------------------

It felt really good to be home. I knew Ardelia wouldn't be here, she had gone to visit relatives, somewhere. It was quiet and the throbbing in my head had also calmed down a bit. It was almost 8:00pm, the time difference was staring to catch up to me, so I took a shower and got into my pajamas. I popped a couple of Tylenol and then flipped on my computer.

I checked out my mail, all junk, poked around the internet for awhile, stalling for as long as I could, finally I gave in and entered the chat room. No one was there. I stared at the computer

screen, that didn't seem to help, so I got up to make some coffee. As the coffee brewed, I stood at the sink admiring the ring still on my finger. I knew I should have taken it off, but it was just so beautiful I wanted to keep it for as long as I could. There wasn't much chance I would ever see a ring like this again, well at least not on my finger. Maybe Crawford could find someone to buy it, or at least take over the payments.

When I heard the coffeepot gurgle, I poured myself a cup and headed back toward the computer.

I could see already that there was someone else in the chat room. I sat down and took a sip of coffee, burning my lip when I saw who was in the room.

Logging Mulder (doc/209.245.74.813) into the chat system…

Well what the hell, he already knew I was here, and that's why I was here anyway, so why not.

Hannah: Hey Mulder you there?

Hannah: Mulder?

Mulder: Good evening Hannah.

Hannah: Hi

Mulder: I trust your trip home was uneventful?

Hannah: Pretty much. And yours?

Mulder: Mine as well. How did your dinner plans turn out?

Hannah: Well, that's kind of a long story.

Mulder: I always have plenty of time where you're concerned, Hannah.

I took a slow deep breath, and began to type the events that had transpired last evening. Was it only last night? It seemed like it had been forever. When I was finished, he did not respond right away. At first I thought he might be angry, but on second thought, he was probably just laughing his ass off. Finally, he returned.

Mulder: Apparently old Jacky boy has finally acquired what he has desperately sought for so long.

Hannah: NO HE HASN"T!!!! NOR WILL HE EVER!!!!

Mulder: Do you expect me to believe that Jack is not enjoying your little predicament?

Hannah: I don't care if he is or not. We will be getting this mess annulled as soon as possible!

Mulder: Are you sure you two can't work this out? The divorce rate is already quite sizeable.

Hannah: Shut up.

Mulder: Forgive me if I find your situation to be rather amusing.

Hannah: Well I'm glad you're a-muussed, but it's not funny to me.

Mulder: I apologize. I would like to make it up to you, if you will allow me?

Hannah: I'm afraid to ask.

Mulder: What would you say if I told you that I could end this misery?

Hannah: I'd say you better leave Jack alone! He didn't mean any harm; well he doesn't deserve to…. well you know.

Mulder: I assure you Hannah, I have no intention of doing anything to Jack.

Hannah: So…. what could you do then?

Mulder: Where is the marriage license?

Hannah: In my briefcase, why?

Mulder: Go get it.

Hannah: Why?

Mulder: Just go get it!

Hannah: k

Hannah: Got it.

Mulder: Read it to me.

Hannah: Why?

Mulder: Hannah!

Hannah: Okay okay, it says this is to certify that Jack and Cl… I mean Hannah, well you know, were married blah blah blah, is there a point to this?

Mulder: There will be. Read the bottom.

Hannah: It's just signed by the owner of the chapel and the justice of the pea….. OMG!!

I couldn't believe my eyes. Then I couldn't believe I hadn't seen it sooner. There it was, plain as day, on the line to the right of Justice of the Peace; the beautifully signed name of

Hannibal Lecter.

Hannah: How?

Mulder: I merely explained to the owner how my associates were rather intoxicated and in no position to be making life decisions in their present condition, that and a small contribution to the chapel's Christmas fund worked nicely.

Hannah: Jack is gonna die when he sees this!

Mulder: One could only hope.

Hannah: OMG, it was you who gave me the ring, wasn't it? I remember sticking out of the

sun-roof during the ring part. You reached out and took my hand, putting the ring on my finger. I remember seeing your eyes over the top of the tinted glasses and under the brim of the hat you were wearing, you winked didn't you?

Mulder: Guilty.

Relief washed over my whole body. Crawford was okay for a boss, but that's as far as I wanted that relationship to go. Now the question was what to do with the ring. Surely I would be expected to turn it in as evidence, unless it got conveniently lost somehow.

Hannah: I can't keep the ring.

Mulder: Correction, you cannot wear the ring, not as long as you are with the 'Company' They will want it for evidence.

Hannah: I still shouldn't keep it, it must have cost a fortune.

Mulder: I would have a difficult time returning it, especially with an inscription.

Hannah: There's an inscription?

I pulled the ring from my finger for the first time since it had been placed there and checked inside. The inscription read; When you are ready….

I looked back to the computer screen to see:

Mulder: I'll be waiting. H ; )

Logging Mulder (doc/209.245.74.813) out of the chat system…

Placing the ring back on my finger, I shut off the computer and said, "Good night Doctor."

Making my way to the bedroom, I had a feeling the dream tonight would have a much different ending.

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Happy B-Day Fauna


	7. Epilogue

I'm not sure why I wrote this, but now that I have, I had to do something with it!

As for a sequel, who knows. I've learned to never say never!

The usual applies; I own no one or nothing pertaining to this story.

**Epilogue**

------------------------------------

It had been a couple days since we returned from Vegas. Dr. Lecter had sent me an e-mail asking me to wait before saying anything to Crawford about the 'ceremony'. I wasn't sure what he had in mind, but I was sure it would be something interesting.

A day later, just before leaving for work, I received a small package. After signing for it, I took it with me to the car and ripped open the box. Inside I found a small box and a letter. I needed no further information on who had sent the package, as the inside of the box was covered in HIS scent. In the small box was a ring, an identical twin to the one he had given me in Vegas. I opened the envelope, which is where the scent was emanating from. Before I started to read the letter, I closed my eyes, inhaling deeply. I kinda felt like a junkie getting a fix. Laughing at myself, I opened the letter and started to read:

_Dearest Clarice,_

_I imagine you are having a difficult time trying to decide how to tell your soon to be ex-husband that you are indeed not conjoined after all. Not because you don't want to, but because you do not wish to part with the ring. This pleases me deeply Clarice, so I have given you another option. The ring I've enclosed is silver and cubic-zirconia, although quite an excellent reproduction, it cost more to mail it to you, than its purchase price, so you need not worry about turning this one in. Who knows Clarice, Jack may just feel that there is enough evidence to start a manhunt on my behalf. If so, I do hope he sends you, we could have some fun._

_Fondest wishes to my favorite Special Agent_

_Hannibal_

As I replaced the letter into the envelope, I took one more deep breath, I couldn't stop the grin from forming on my face. I had already worked out a story for Crawford, about how the ring had slipped off my finger while I was taking a bath and must have gone down the drain. There was no way in hell I was turning that ring over to the Bureau so they could stuff it in some evidence locker.

Putting the imitation on my finger, I took the rest of the package and the letter back into the house, tossing them into the rear of my closet before heading off to work. This day promised to be interesting, if nothing else.

------------------------------------

Approaching Crawford's office, I could see him at his desk, his hands rubbing circles at his temples.

"Mr. Crawford." I said softly.

Letting his hands slide down his cheeks, he replaced his glasses and looking to me he said, "Come in Starling, we have a problem."

"What's wrong Sir?"

"I've been calling Vegas for two days now Starling, the Chapel, City Hall, and they don't seem to have any record of our being married, so I'm at a loss on what to do now."

Clearing my throat I said, "Well…. I think I might have found something that would explain that, Sir."

With a curious look he said, "What did you find Starling?"

I reached into my briefcase and pulled out the marriage license, handing it to Crawford.

After looking at it for a moment he asked, "So what is it that you found?"

So much for being observant, "Look at the bottom Sir."

I watched Crawford as he re-read the document. When he got to the bottom I saw all the blood drain from his face and knew he finally got it. Slamming the license on his desk he yelled, "That son of a bitch! That fucking son of a bitch! Did you know he was there Starling?"

Putting on my most innocent face as I lied through my teeth I said, "No Sir! Last night I was reading it over and there it was. I would have called you, but it was late and there was nothing we could do about it anyway."

"And the ring? I suppose that was from him as well?"

"I don't know Sir, I really don't remember much."

"You do still have the ring, don't you?"

"Yes Sir." I pulled the ring from my finger and gave it to Crawford. He examined the ring before continuing with his tie-raid, "Did you see this Starling?"

"See what Sir?"

"Nevermind, it's not important. Why don't you call the Chapel in Vegas and see if there's anyone who…….." He paused, considering what he was about to say and then decided against it. "Forget it Starling, just go back to work. Lecter's long gone and that's it. I'll write the report and take all the heat for our little outing."

"Sir, I've got an idea, if you want to here it."

"Sure, why not. I seem to be fresh out of ideas at this point. What's on your mind?"

"Well Sir, you and I are the only ones that know what Dr. Lecter did, right?"

"Yeah, and?"

"And so, why does anyone else need to know?"

"What exactly are you saying Starling?"

He couldn't be this dense, could he?

"Sir, the only other people that know most of what happened are Pearsall and Krendler, so if they ask, tell them the marriage was annulled, get rid of the ring and just let the whole thing die. I don't see any good that can come from telling the Bureau that we all got drunk, acted like fools and then let a cannibal marry us."

Crawford sat back in his chair considering her words. "You know Starling, you might be right. It would be best, for all involved, if this just went away." Thinking about it for a little longer, he finally said, "Okay Starling, that's the way we'll play it. If Pearsall or Krendler ask you anything, just tell them I took care of it. Then we can put this behind us. Agreed?"

"Agreed."

"And Starling."

"Yes Sir."

"I really am sorry about this."

"I know Sir, don't worry about it, I'm not."

As Clarice left his office, Crawford looked to the ring once more. A tear formed in his eye as he read the inscription for the last time:

Jack, Only in your dreams. H

------------------------------------

Later that night, I sat at my desk with the computer on and the chat room up. I had been playing solitaire for about an hour before he finally showed up.

Hannah: Hi

Mulder: Good evening my dear.

Hannah: Got the package.

Mulder: And?

Hannah: And it smelled great!

Mulder: I'm glad you think so, but I'm sure that's not what I meant.

Hannah: Oh yeah….right, I showed Jack the license, you would have loved the look on his face.

Mulder: I'm sure. And the ring?

Hannah: I gave him the ring, he was upset, for awhile, but I convinced him to drop it.

Mulder: Meaning?

Hannah: I told him we would be better off if we just forgot the whole thing.

Mulder: And he agreed?

Hannah: Yep

Mulder: I must say, I'm a little surprised.

Hannah: Well like I told him, there was nothing to be gained by bringing this out.

Mulder: So what are your plans now, if I might ask?

Hannah: Well, I still have three weeks of vacation. I was thinking, London should be nice this time of year.

Mulder: You are quite right my dear, however, Italy would be a much better choice.

Hannah: Oh…. and why is that?

Mulder: I suppose you would have to be there to understand.

Hannah: And if I decided that Italy was to be my destination?

Mulder: I'm quite sure you would have no trouble finding a 'guide' to show you the sights.

Hannah: You wouldn't happen to know a 'guide' would you?

Mulder: As a matter of fact….

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End file.
